Mahatma Gandhi on "Seven Deadly Social Sins"

Gandhi wrote about his "Seven Deadly Social Sins" in 1925. He was not "postmodern," as philosophers might note that his principles are grounded in natural law, which the postmodern mind does not accept. 

To be clear, I am not a postmodernist. I’m more of an 18th-century liberal. 

“Natural law” is the idea that moral truths are grounded in human nature and knowable by reason. Among other things, though it no longer is fashionable, I do believe in universal truths; the usefulness of reason and intrinsic order. 

Category	Natural Law Assumptions	Postmodern Assumptions
Source of Moral Truth	Moral truths are objective and grounded in human nature; knowable through reason.	No universal moral truths; morality is constructed by cultures, groups, or power structures.
Human Nature	Human nature is real, stable, and has inherent purposes (telos).	Human nature is fluid or socially constructed; no fixed essence.
Rationality	Reason is capable of discovering truths about the good and the just.	Reason is limited, situated, and often a tool of power; skepticism toward “universal reason.”
Truth	Truth is objective, universal, and corresponds to reality.	Truth is relative, plural, and contingent on language, culture, and power dynamics.
Ethical Foundations	Ethics grounded in objective human goods (e.g., life, knowledge, community).	Ethics are negotiated within communities; no foundation outside discourse and context.
Meaning/Purpose	The universe has intrinsic order and purpose; humans flourish by aligning with it.	Meaning is created, not discovered; purpose is individual or culturally defined.
View of the Person	The person has inherent dignity derived from human nature and rationality.	The self is constructed through language, narrative, and social context.
Language	Language can reliably convey truth about reality.	Language constructs reality; words shape power relations; skepticism toward “transparent” language.
Power Dynamics	Power should be subordinated to objective moral norms.	Power shapes knowledge and norms; “objective norms” often mask domination.
Politics	Legitimate political authority must be grounded in justice and natural moral law.	Politics is an arena of competing narratives; legitimacy is contingent and unstable.
Moral Disagreement	Resolvable through reasoned argument appealing to shared human nature.	Moral claims are incommensurable across cultures; no neutral ground for resolution.
Social Order	Social institutions should reflect natural human goods and promote flourishing.	Social institutions are historically contingent and often expressions of power structures.
Freedom	Freedom is ordered to the good; choosing the good enhances flourishing.	Freedom is autonomy from imposed norms; emphasis on liberation from structures.
Religion/Metaphysics	Moral reality is grounded in metaphysical truths (even if knowable by reason alone).	Suspicion toward metaphysics; emphasis on pluralism and local narratives.

Gandhi’s approach is grounded in natural law. Bluntly, natural Law assumes:

• There is a stable human nature

• Reason can grasp moral truths

• Ethics is grounded in universal goods

• Societies flourish when they conform to objective moral order. 

• Postmodernism assumes:

• Reality and identity are constructed

• Truth claims are power claims

• Universal moral standards are illusions

• Meaning and morality are contingent, plural, and negotiable.

So the reason many common discussions about “politics” flounder is because we no longer share common fundamental assumptions about “the nature of things.”